The temples of Angkor: Cambodia's glorious past

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Day 385: Sunday 19th July - Eating crickets

I opt to get the bus with Mike and Trudi to Siem Reap rather than take the boat due to a combination of factors: more time in bed, cost, journey time and sticking together with the other two. I would have liked to cross Tonle Sap Lake which is the largest in South East Asia but I can’t justify the additional $13 it will cost me. As we wait for the bus to turn up, there is a woman selling crickets so I decide to get a bag. They are tastier than they look or sound - similar to seaweed that you would get in a Chinese restaurant. When the bus does eventually turn up I am half regretting my decision to get the bus as it is full so we have to sit in the aisle on seats designed for a three year old to sit on. The five hour journey passes quickly, we soon get proper seats when people get off. I don’t think the scenery in the west of the country rivals that of the east though. There are still open expanses of rice paddies but there aren’t too many Pandanus trees dotting the landscape like in the east.

Even before we get off the bus I can tell that I’m back on the tourist trail for maybe the first time proper since Thailand. Expensive hotels line the approach into Siem Reap. We get a motodop to a guesthouse from the bus station. We know where we want to stay - there is a guesthouse that has free bike hire, free breakfasts and free tea and coffee, and all for a good price. They have only one room when we arrive so the three of us walk along the street to find an alternative. We find a great guesthouse - Lee Phal Lean Angkor - it is $1 cheaper but doesn’t do all the freebies listed above. I’m more than happy though - it has cable TV, duvets, hot water, the room is cool and clean, free water, free internet and wi-fi and a wardrobe. This is as good a room as I’ve had in Asia so I check in whilst Mike and Trudi take the last room in the other guesthouse.

Hungry we get a huge Indian meal which fills me up for the rest of the day. We then discuss our plan of attack for the Temples of Angkor over the next three days and then I spend the evening relaxing in my almost decadent new surroundings before getting an early night in preparation for a long day tomorrow.

Day 386: Monday 20th July - Overexertion on the first day touring the Temples of Angkor

I meet Mike and Trudi at 6:30am at their guesthouse. I’m going to be cheeky and help myself to a free breakfast and the free bikes too. The breakfast is disappointing - a dry baguette with tea - and the bikes have seen better days. I decide to hire a decent bike down the street for a dollar rather than risk the bikes in the guesthouse - the experience in Kratie has shown me what can happen if you have a poorly maintained bike. Mike and Trudi are thinking along the same lines too. After a restless night in a hot room, the breakfast being less than enticing and the condition of the bikes they decide to change to my guesthouse. It will delay the start to the day but it doesn’t matter.

We finally get on our way at 7:30am for the 2km cycle up to the ticket office. I was expecting long queues but thankfully it is quiet. There is the option of one, three and week long passes, and we opt for the middle one based on advice from other people and our estimate of how long it will take to see the main temples.

The temples of Angkor, Cambodia’s premier tourist attraction are probably Southeast Asia’s main tourist attraction. This is what the hordes are here to see. Built between the ninth and thirteenth centuries, hundreds of temples are situated in an area which was once the political, social and religious centre of an empire that stretched from Burma to Vietnam. The Kingdom of Angkor was the dominant one in Southeast Asia, with its peak in 1150 in terms of power and influence. The city which once stood here boasted a population of one million at the time when London was a little town of 50,000 inhabitants. The houses, public buildings and palaces have long gone - built out of wood they have long decayed. What remains are the temples - built out of brick, sandstone and laterite - as stone was reserved for the immortal gods not present day kings. All buildings at Angkor are religious monuments except the Royal Palace, elephant terrace (royal reception hall) and leper king terrace. Angkor Thom was a living city and there is evidence around Angkor Wat of a city. The majority of the temples are Hindu temples, as this was the dominant religion until the late twelfth century when there was a brief flirtation with Buddhism.

Angkor is the heart and soul of Cambodia, and a source of inspiration and national pride to all Khmers (or certainly all that I’ve met) as they struggle to rebuild their lives after the years of terror under the Khmer Rouge. Angkor was discovered by French naturalist Henri Mahout in 1863 but this reflects a Eurocentric view. The Khmers never forgot the existence of their monuments.

We cycle by the star of the show - Angkor Wat - as we want to build up to the biggest and the best over the course of the three days. We start instead with the best temples on the grand circuit - a 26 kilometre loop which starts and finishes at Angkor Wat. Already we have been struck by the beauty of the setting of the temples. The grounds surrounding the temples are all well maintained, the road so far has cut through a forest and we’ve come across the beautiful moat that surrounds Angkor Wat. Before we get far I buy a guide for the temples from one of the many vendors that hang around the temples. At each of the temples I sit down and with the other two and we have a story time to learn about the temple we are about to visit. Mike is soon bored, and I don’t blame him as the book is far too detailed and it bores me as I read it out. It proves to be a waste of money.

We cycle through the gates of Angkor Thom and once out of the ancient city the roads are quiet and peaceful. I continue to taunt Trudi by calling her Daisy as she’s cycling that slowly! The temples we visit are equally spaced out - maybe 2-3 kilometres between each one and in the 10 minutes or so between temples you can absorb what you’ve seen. I’m glad we chose to do it on bike today, especially as the weather is behaving itself by being overcast. I can only wish that the sun doesn’t appear or it doesn’t rain.

Preah Khan is our first stop. Meaning Sacred Sword it once housed more than 1000 teachers and may have been a Buddhist university. It is a large complex, a maze of corridors and lichen-clad stonework. You approach it along a causeway lined by stone gods which passes over a moat which encloses the temple. Inside it is overgrown by trees and vegetation. We all enjoy this temple, probably the best on the grand circuit. I buy a postcard from a girl for double what it should cost but she amazes me with her knowledge of capital cities in the world (of all the countries I ask her she only fails to know the capitals of Indonesia and Argentina). She also counts to ten in six languages. She deserves the business after this so I don’t mind parting with the extra money.

From Preah Khan we continue clockwise around the circuit until we reach Neak Pean. Neak Pean comprises a central tower on a circular island in the middle of an arrangement of dry ponds. There isn’t too much to detain you for long and we’re soon on our way to Ta Som. Ta Som is a small temple and is quite remote in a semi-ruined state its face towers are its charm and the eastern gate has been overwhelmed by an ancient tree.

Now over half way around the 26 kilometre circuit, we stop next at Eastern Mebon. We get lunch before we enter the temple. As we walk over we are accosted by half a dozen women crying out for our business. I’m manhandled by two, one pulling each arm until one succeeds in getting us to eat in her cafe. We are given a menu and confronted with extortionate prices for the most basic of meals. Mike kicks up a fuss and we are then handed the ‘flashpacker menu’ in place of the ‘rich tourist menu’ and further complaint lands us with the ‘cheap backpacker menu’. The prices have literally halved from the initial menu we were handed. Each successive day at lunch a similar trick is tried, always without success and this is one of the less pleasing points of a visit to the temples. As for the other annoyances I would list them as follows: kids begging for a dollar around the temples, vendors everywhere selling tourist tat especially cute kids who break your heart when you turn them down and finally in the more popular temples if you time your visit wrong having to share it with annoying package tourists, particularly the Japanese who live up to their stereotype when it comes to manners and decorum in a sacred place. They just push to the front in ignorance of everyone else to get that photo!

Eastern Mebon is a three tiered temple in a rural setting amongst lush ricefields. Library type buildings and elephant sculptures are the main features of the temple. The highlight of my visit though, and perhaps of the whole day is meeting a man who survived the Khmer Rouge regime. Sarath starts talking to me, and introduces himself as being from Canada. Further into the conversation he reveals that he was originally from Siem Reap and was enlisted by the Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970’s. In 1980 he escaped to Thailand and then on to Canada. He escaped alone and did not see his mother again for 12 years, he did not know if she was still alive. He’s still a proud Khmer and has brought his wife and two daughters back to his homeland to see the wonder of Angkor. It is a real privilege talking to him. I imagine only a very small percentage of tourists ever get the chance to speak to a survivor of the regime about it on the account of it being a sensitive subject and language barriers. I would love to spend longer speaking to him to learn more but at the same time I respect the sensitive nature of the conversation.

Our final stop on the grand circuit is at Pre Rup. This temple is one of the earlier ones, dating from the tenth century. It has imposing brick towers, and it is a steep climb to the top but offers great views from the upper terrace. After Preah Khan, it is probably the best temple on the circuit. We cycle around the remainder of the circuit, having a race with Team Cambodia pretending we’re in the Tour de France or something similar! We reach a junction where we have the decision to either do the small circuit or visit the temples in the Roluos Group. The original plan was to do the latter, which is what we end up doing but I wish we’d stopped to think about it and discuss it for longer as it doesn’t prove to be the best decision.

We underestimate (or maybe that should be I underestimate) the time it will take to cycle to the Roluos Group. It ends up taking two hours from leaving Pre Rup. The cycling gets harder as the sun comes out and I end up getting burnt. Most of the ride is along a national highway which detracts from the enjoyment of the ride. By the time we get to Preah Ko we are all knackered. Roluos served as the capital of Indravarman I in the late ninth century. Chronologically these are the first temples of Angkor, and Preah Ko is the first temple at Roluos. Preah Ko is a small elegant brick temple consisting of 6 brick towers. After the visit, I am thinking to myself that it wasn’t worth the long ride out to here.

This opinion changes after a short five minute ride down to Bakong. Bakong is the first Khmer temple mountain, built in the late ninth century. It was the state temple of Indravaram I and is the grandest of Angkor’s earlier temples. It includes two moats and is in a beautiful setting. Like in most of the major temples, Khmer musicians are playing traditional music adding to the peaceful atmosphere. Between the outer and inner moats are the remains of 22 brick towers. On the temple front it is the highlight along with the first of the day, Preah Khan.

We now have a 14 kilometre ride to Siem Reap along the national highway. I’m exhausted and let the other two ride away from me - now I’m Daisy! I’ll see them back in Siem Reap. I’m starving now and try to get some custard apples on the way back. I know what the correct price is for one (300 riel) as I got one in Battambang two days ago but each of the three stalls I try want double. It is clearly because I’m white and perceived as rich but I’m not having it. As I wearily cycle on home I regret not buying some as it is only pence we are talking about - not much for me.

Back at base I can’t decide if I’m more hungry or more tired. I’m almost too exhausted to eat and can’t be bothered to walk far so we go to the same Indian as yesterday as it’s the nearest restaurant to the guesthouse. We work out that we cycled 60 kilometres and we must have been out almost 12 hours. It’s been a long, long day.

Day 387: Tuesday 21st July - Visiting the Tombraider temple and the Landmine Museum on empty

I wake up feeling terrible after overdoing it yesterday. There’s no time to lounge around in bed though as I only have a 3 day ticket for the temples of Angkor and I am going to need all three. Trudi and Mike are feeling tired as well after yesterday so we agree to get a motodop around the ruins. I leave the bargaining to Mike and he gets a great deal at only $10 for the day - and we want to go to some of the outlying temples. It is not going to be as intense a day as yesterday as we are only going to visit three temples on the small circuit, one of the outlying temples and the landmine museum. I’m hoping I can be back in my room recouperating by mid afternoon.

We start the day at Ta Keo which is a massive pyramid of 5 towers on top of an imposing temple mountain construction. It is a very steep climb to the top - not one to attempt if you’re not 100% comfortable with heights or feeling under the weather, but I still climb to the top, albeit rather nervously. Next up is Ta Prohm better known as the setting for Tombraider. The 12th century temple monastery has been left in its natural state, an example of how most of Angkor looked when it was discovered in the 19th century. It is atmospheric and has opportunities to explore the over grown and gently declining ruins. Inside the temple is a maze of narrow corridors and fallen masonry and strangler figs and trees are entwined among ruins. It is the highlight of the day on the temple front but I can’t find Angelina Jolie amongst the ruins and instead I have to cope with too many annoying Japanese tourists who detract from the atmospheric surroundings. We definitely timed our visit at the wrong time! Banteay Kdei is the last temple on the small circuit which doesn’t set the world alight.

We take a break from the temples by visiting the Landmine Museum next. It was established by Aki Ra whose story and subsequent devotion to clearing mines is amazing. His parents were killed by the Khmer Rouge, the regime he later became a child soldier for. He used to lay land mines, not realising how terrible they were as all he had known in his life was war. In 1987, in his late teens he defected from the Khmer Rouge and joined the Vietnamese army. After the Vietnamese left in 1989 he continued to fight against the Khmer Rouge for the Cambodian army. When the UN arrived in the early nineties he was trained as a deminer, and due to his knowledge of mines he had an aptitude for it. He opened the museum 12 years ago and continues to clear mines in his homeland. He estimates that he has cleared 50,000 mines in the last 18 years using nothing more than his bare hands and a knife. Not only has he been clearing mines but he has set up a school for disadvantaged children. He currently looks after 24 children and reading some of their stories about the events that have marked their childhood in the museum is heartbreaking. Being schooled by Aki Ran allows them a chance to fulfil their many dreams. I have found a cause worth supporting and make a donation on the way out.

Learning about the landmine issue in Cambodia and worldwide makes grim reading but at the same time is engossing and educational. It is estimated that there are still between 3-6 million mines in Cambodia as well as the unexploded ordnance (UXO) from the US bombing campaign 30 years ago. The K-5 mine belt along the Cambodian-Thai border is considered one of the most hazardous environments on the planet - mines wound and kill hundreds every year. Evidence of this can be seen on a daily basis in Siem Reap where there are numerous individuals with missing limbs.

Antipersonnel mines were first used in World War II and are designed to maim rather than kill. The logic being that more resources will be expended caring for a wounded soldier on a battlefield than a dead one. They began to be used to target civilians, terrorise communities, deny access to farming land and restrict population movement. Landmines are cheap and easy to make, costing as little as $1 to produce, yet as much as $1000 to find and destroy. Despite a treaty coming into force in international law in 1999 to ban production of landmines and clear any mined areas, they are still produced by 15 countries. Today, 83 countries in the world are mine/UXO affected and the world’s landmine stockpile runs into millions of tonnes. The world has yet another huge problem to solve.

From the landmine museum we continue north to one of the outlying temples, Banteay Srei. It is described as the ‘ jewel of Khmer Art’. It is of miniature scale to other temples but exquisite decorative carving and near total decoration of its surfaces is exceptional. Temple visiting over for the day, all I can think of now is getting back to the guesthouse and spending the rest of the day resting and hoping that I feel better for tomorrow which is the big day on the temple front.

Day 388: Wednesday 22nd July - Amazed by Angkor Wat

I meet Mike and Trudi at 5am so that we can get to Angkor Wat for sunrise. We’re back on the bikes and I’m feeling much better. Trudi’s back tyre has gone flat overnight so she has to wake the rental shop owners up to get a replacement. Then there’s a problem with getting the bike lock off the replacement bike so it is just gone 5:15am when we start the cycle. We should just about make it for sunrise. I set a fast pace in front knowing that it is going to be touch and go if we are going to get there in time as it is about a 30 minute ride to Angkor Wat from Siem Reap. The others are behind, at least along the riverfront, but the next time I look back I can see no sign of them. I continue on to Angkor Wat where I wait for them. The sunrise is non-existent as it is too overcast but what’s more concerning is there is no sign of the other two. I wonder if there’s been a problem with the bikes or an accident, and after waiting for an hour, my thoughts are starting towards it being the latter. There isn’t any real choice other than continuing on with my visit of the temples as I don’t know where they’ll be if I do return to Siem Reap. I try and put it out of my mind but I keep fearing the worst now and again throughout the morning.

Having waited an hour outside Angkor Wat for Mike and Trudi, the timing of my visit to Angkor Wat couldn’t be better. The tour groups have been and gone for their sunrise visit to the temple and are no doubt tucking into a hearty breakfast back in their plush hotels. I therefore have to share the most spectacular of the temples with relatively few others.

Angkor Wat is one of the most inspiring and spectacular monuments ever conceived by the human mind. It is the world’s largest religious monument and what everyone comes to Cambodia to see. It was built in the early 12th century with later additions during the reign of Suryavarman II. It served as both the capital and state temple. It is a completely realised microcosm of the Hindu universe, culminating in the five peaks of Mount Meru. The moat represents the mythical oceans surrounding the earth, the succession of concentric galleries represent the mountain ranges that surround Mount Meru .It is the grandest and most sublime of all the Khmer temples, but also a city in its own right. A rectangle 1.5km by 1.3km including moat which is crossed by two causeways. The temple only takes up 10% of the space within the outer enclosure; the rest was taken up by the city.

That describes it in words, but words cannot start to describe the beauty of Angkor Wat. From the walk along the causeway, through the entrance of the ancient city with the towers in the distance, to walking inside the temple I am mesmerised. I stop next to the libraries, short of the temple and sit for a while looking on at the splendour of the monument. I get talking to an American couple who are sitting waiting for a solar eclipse which is due in the next 20 minutes. There isn’t any noticeable change in the skyline but you don’t need a natural wonder to make Angkor Wat amaze. Once inside the walls of the temple I find it a spiritual experience. Some of the stone carving is incredible, the galleries have a definite ‘Oxford college’ feel to them, the temple walls are colossal but the star of the show has to be the central tower, rising 55 metres above the ground. Not normally one to linger in temples, I find it hard to draw myself away from Angkor Wat, and my visit must total just over two hours.

As a man-made wonder Angkor Wat has a place in the modern wonders of the world alongside Machu Picchu, The Pyramids of Giza and The Taj Mahal which I’ve also seen, it is that impressive. I’d maybe put it slightly behind the other three as they each have an additional X-factor. With Machu Picchu it’s the location of the temple, with the pyramids you wonder how they constructed such a monument almost 5000 years ago and with the Taj Mahal it is its sheer beauty. Nevertheless, Angkor Wat has to be one of the highlights of my trip to Southeast Asia - certainly from an architectual point of view it is the stand out sight.

When I finally drag myself away from Angkor Wat, I cycle on to Angkor Thom, entering the fortified ancient city through the south gate. Each of the four entrance gates is marked by a tower with four faces, preceded by the no less impressive avenue of gods lining the bridge across the moat. Angkor Thom appropriately enough means ‘great city’. The city walls, surrounded by a moat, enclose a square, approximately 3km on each side. Four roads from the gates converge on the central state temple of Bayon. It contains the separate monuments of Baphoun, Bayon, the Elephant Terrace, the Terrace of the Leper King amongst others. The ancient city was built in the late 12th century by Angkor’s greatest king, Jayavarman VII and remained the capital until the 17th century.

I cycle to the centre of Angkor Thom to Bayon. This is the state temple of Jayavarman VII and his immediate successors. It was the symbolic centre of the universe and the empire. Bayon is a mass of face-towers to create a stone mountain of ascending peaks. There are 216 gargantuan faces of the Buddha for compassion staring down at you from 37 towers from wherever you stand in the temple. It must be one of the most enigmatic and powerful religious constructions in the world. The only slightly disappointing thing is that I’ve timed my visit to coincide with a mass of tourists. However, it doesn’t detract too much from what is after Angkor Wat the best of the Temples of Angkor.

I continue cycling through the ancient city of Angkor Wat and stop at the Terrace of Elephants which looks out over the Royal Square. The carvings of elephants along its 300 metre long walls which give it its modern name. Next to the Elephant Terrace is the Terrace of the Leper King. Much smaller than the Terrace of the Elephants it is likewise decorated with tiers of meticulous carvings. Next to the terraces is Baphoun. It is being restored at the moment and is in a ruined state. Because of this, the massive five tiered pyramid is a bit of a disappointment to look at but the 200 metre causeway that leads to the temple is impressive. Whilst inside Angkor Thom I look skywards and see a partial solar eclipse. A circular rainbow surrounds the sun and the sky inside the rainbow is darker than that outside. Amazing stuff!

I get some refreshment and take a break from the temples for a while. I decide to cycle to the fixed balloon after my early lunch to get one last view of Angkor Wat from the sky. I am to be disappointed though as the balloon has stopped for the day as they don’t have the thermals to get it up after 9:30am I am told. I can return tomorrow morning if I’m still interested in getting an aerial view of Angkor Wat. Having pretty much seen all the main temples of Angkor, I cycle back to Siem Reap.

I find Trudi and Mike in their room. I’m relieved to see that they haven’t been involved in an accident but poor Trudi has had her bag snatched by a motorbike as we were cycling alongside the river this morning. Cambodia is renowned for bag snatchers and in both Kratie and Phnom Penh as well as Siem Reap we were warned to be on guard. I’m sure the haste to get out this morning and the problem with Trudi’s bike were the reason that she didn’t have her daypack straps attached over the handlebars. They’ve lost their camera and a few other items but no money and most of their pictures are backed up, so it could have been worse. They’re both being philosophical about it which is good to see. They never made it to Angkor Wat due to the bag snatching and have spent the morning with the police and coming to terms with the robbery. I urge them to go and visit the temples this afternoon as it would be a great shame if they made it to Siem Reap and didn’t see the main reason for making the journey. I manage to convince them to go and they are later glad that they had made the effort.

Day 389: Thursday 23rd July - A farewell party

It feels great to have a day of relaxation after a fairly intense last three days. Although I wake early and could go up to Angkor Wat to do the balloon ride I missed yesterday I just can’t be bothered. I’m content with what I did see and want to spend a relaxing day. Siem Reap (meaning Thailand defeated) is a pleasant enough town especially down by the river where there are some manicured lawns and the riverside is pleasant to walk along. I walk along it to the post office to send a postcard to Songkeo, my Laos friend I met in Phonsavon bus station. He gave me his address and I have wanted to write to him since our meeting. I hope the postcard makes it as Cambodian postal services are not renowned as being reliable. I find a Cambodian gift to give to Jonathan as a token of my gratitude for his offer to go and stay with him in Saigon when I get there in a few days. We are ex-colleagues and it will be good to see him again after a gap of a year.

That is about the sum of my day - I read more of Ranulph Fiennes book which is engrossing. He must be the ultimate adventurer in the world today - one of the only people to have reached both poles and climbed Everest. His account of scaling the Eiger is possibly the greatest of his many achievements. He suffers from vertigo, has lost half his fingers to frostbite on one of his polar expeditions and had never done any technical climbing a year before his attempt. And, I nearly forgot to add he is in his sixties - what a guy! It is interesting to read about his Everest experience too. He is now one of only 2700 people to successfully reach the summit the world’s tallest mountain. I thought it would have been so many more by now - it makes me realise what an honour it was to meet those two guys on Mount Kinabalu in Borneo that had. Another thing he talks about which helps put my climb of Cotapaxi into perspective is the affects of altitude. He states that above 18,000 feet the affects of altitude are severe. Cotapaxi was over 19,000 feet and at that height the level of oxygen I was breathing was less than 50% that of sea level. Maybe I should be a bit more proud of my achievement.

In the evening, I meet Mike and Trudi for a ‘farewell party’. We head to bar street which is the centre of nightlife in Siem Reap. I guess because of the abundance of tourists rather than travellers it has a more sophisticated feel than most night spots. After eating Mexican food we get an ice cream and settle down to listen to some live music in one of the bars. Mike has just bought a money belt which he is proudly wearing, and after the bag snatching of yesterday, Me and Trudi play an evil joke on him by taking the cash out of it when he goes to the toilet. When he arrives at the bar and realises what’s happened he is speechless. I miss most of it as I’m busy slavering over the barmaid complimenting her on her eyes until Trudi kicks me. We can’t stop laughing and then Mike knows he’s been had - just before he was about to go back to the cafe and ask about it.

The beers are 50 cents, the band are excellent and we have a lot of fun. Mike still can’t master how to burp which causes more hilarity as does every visit to the toilet which is strangely placed behind the bar, which is just too much temptation to pick something up and mess around every time you need the toilet. I introduce Mike and Trudi to caiparinha’s which they oddly don’t like too much but when you can get 8 beers for the price of one cocktail I can half see why. On the way home in the early hours, I stop to get a jar of milo which I’m almost addicted to. Knowing I’m going to stay with Jonathan for a few days with a ready source of boiling water is too good an opportunity to turn down.

We also get hassled by numerous street children and beggars with missing limbs on the way back which is one of the worst features of Siem Reap. It is heartbreaking to see, but I’d rather give to a charitable cause like at the Landmine Museum where you know the money will be put to good use. Mind you, I still feel heartless when I drew out $200 from the ATM earlier today and ignored the pleas of a lady with a child begging next to me. I’ve always had the same view of begging and that is that you just don’t know where the money is going, but Siem Reap put that view to the hardest test as I felt that the beggars were genuine. You can’t help everyone but it doesn’t stop it being sad.

Day 390: Friday 24th July - Saying goodbye to two true friends

Today is a farewell, a parting of ways. After nearly three weeks travelling together, and almost five months since we first met on the Perama boat in Indonesia it is time to say goodbye to Mike and Trudi. They are heading to Thailand tomorrow and then on to India, whilst I’m going in the opposite direction, east to Vietnam and then to China. I will miss them, together we have endured the highs and lows of travelling. They’ve had their bag snatched and I’ve been scammed out of money. Apart from this and a few minor irritations in addition, it has mainly been highs though. We’ve shared many of the experiences of coming to grasps with new cultures, languages and customs and I think we’d now say we’ve seen most of what Southeast Asia has to throw at you. We have one last breakfast together in a hungover state before saying our goodbyes. We will stay in touch and definitely meet back in the UK at some point in the future when we’re all back there.

I climb on board the bus for the six hour journey back to Phnom Penh, where I will break the journey for a night, before continuing on to Vietnam. A few minutes into the journey I look down at my shorts and spot that Trudi has sewn one of the pockets up when I give her them to repair a hole in the bum yesterday. Initially I try to take the thread out but then I decide that I’m going to keep it in as a reminder of all the happy times I had together with her and Mike.

Arriving in a city or anywhere for that matter for a second time is so much easier. I know where to stay, where to eat, how much things cost. As we near Phnom Penh, I look across to see a few travellers thumbing through their guidebook trying to work out where to stay, what to do etc. I don’t have any of that hassle. I get off the bus before it stops at the central market to avoid the need to get a motodop back to where I am staying. The other tourists are none the wiser and must wonder what I’m doing. A five minute walk later and I am at the guesthouse where I stayed last time, being greeted by acquaintances from my last visit.

Room sorted, I swap some books in the bookshop across the street, and pick a China guide up on the cheap. Now, it is time to eat. I pay my old Indian friend a visit for a $2 all you can eat thali. Stuffed, I head a few doors down the street to get a massage from a blind woman. I ask for a strong massage and boy is it strong, but also good. I think if I stayed in Cambodia long enough I would become the biggest sponsor of the blind in the country! I can’t find all the guys I had an impromptu party with two weeks ago for a drink so I opt instead for an early night - I think my body is glad of it! Before I go to sleep, I can’t help reading about Tibet in my new guide. If there’s one place more than any other that I want to go to on the remainder of my trip it is Tibet. It sounds an absolute nightmare though to get in and to travel around - permits for everything. I’m excited about China but I shouldn’t get ahead of myself, I still have three weeks in Vietnam to look forward to.

As for Cambodia it hasn’t been my favourite country. There isn’t as much to see as in other countries I’ve visited. The temples of Angkor are the highlight and I found the museums, sights and literature on the Khmer Rouge (Tuol Sleng museum and the Landmine museum in particular) extremely interesting though equally as sobering. Outside this the regional centres haven’t got too much going on to detain you for that long. Travelling with Mike and Trudi definitely enhanced my experience of Cambodia and I had a lot more fun than if I had been on my own. I think back to the bike ride in Kratie, the second day in Phnom Penh with Neng, having a birthday celebration in a posh restaurant in Kampot, riding the Bamboo train in Battambang and then visiting the temples of Angkor together culminating in our ‘party’ last night and there have been lots of laughs, and some happy times together in Cambodia.

Otherwise the highlight of Cambodia had been the children who are the happiest, friendliest kids anywhere in the world, wonderfully naive and untouched by the scars of the past. The Khmer people are also extremely friendly, maybe not quite so much as the Laotians but not far behind and my experiences in these two former parts of Indochina have buried any lingering thoughts of homesickness in the back of my head. The food has been better than Laos. The Khmer dishes I’ve tried (Amok and Lok Lak) were good but I’ve also found myself drifting back to the comfort of western food which is easier to get in a more switched on country to tourism. All in all, I don’t think I’d come back as I’ve seen what I wanted to see, experienced what I wanted to experience and there’s nothing left that really interests me to bring me back.

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